SEOUL: South Korean police on Friday arrested six US nationals attempting to send plastic bottles packed with rice and Bibles to North Korea, the head of the investigation team said.

Local police said the six were trying to send thousands of plastic bottles, filled with rice, one-dollar bills and Bibles, into the sea off Ganghwa Island at 1:03 am on Friday when they were caught.

“We have arrested and are questioning six American nationals in their 20s to 50s on suspicion of violating the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety,” the head of the investigation team at Ganghwa Police Station in Incheon told AFP.

The Americans could not speak Korean, so “an interpreter was provided for them and we have since started the questioning,” he added.

Located northwest of Seoul, Ganghwa Island is one of the closest South Korean territories to North Korea, with some parts of the surrounding sea lying just 10 kilometers (six miles) from the maritime border between the two countries.